Brazil’s Minister of Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade, Luiz Fernando Furlan, received a show of support from the directors of Ford of Brazil for the agreement signed by Brazil and Argentina on Monday, June 26, to achieve balance in their bilateral automobile trade and establish "a standard" for new investments in the sector.
The agreement, which will go into effect on July 1st and be valid for two years, provides for more flexibility in duty-free automobile import limits.
At the end of the encounter in the ministry, Ford’s global vice-president, Dom di Marco, observed that the world’s major automobile manufacturers operate in both countries and that the agreement to stabilize the market in both, with repercussions as well in the Mercosur, will chiefly benefit the development of the Argentinean auto parts industry, which is much smaller than its Brazilian counterpart (around 25%, according to an estimate by the Ministry of Development).
According to the Ford executive, minister Furlan assured them that the deal is balanced and gives a green light to more investments by manufacturers in both countries.
According to di Marco, the minister reiterated the Brazilian government’s desire to work on behalf of free trade in the Mercosur.
Along these lines, the agreement with Argentina is expected to solidify the bases for this to occur in the not-so-distant future.
ABr